5 questions with Rays' Kelly Shoppach

Some interesting tidbits about catcher Kelly Shoppach, one of the Rays' key new pieces for 2010.

•He and Rays shortstop Jason Bartlett were teammates in the Cape Cod League in 2000 and played against each other in college with Shoppach at Baylor and Bartlett at Oklahoma.

•For the last several years he worked with the Providence House, a shelter for abused women and children in the Cleveland area.

•His brother, Kyle, has been a football coach at McGregor High School in Waco, Texas, and Kelly would like to coach high school football in his hometown of Fort Worth when he retires from baseball.

Earlier this camp, we caught up with Shoppach.

How do you view your competition for playing time with incumbent Dioner Navarro?

"I don't. I just play. Do I want to play every day? Yes. I'm competitive. We all want to play. Every pitcher wants to pitch, every (position) player wants to play. But I don't view it as a competition. Whoever is helping us win, I expect him to play."

You're on a club that has realistic postseason aspirations. How motivating is that?

"It's all about getting to the postseason. It's an amazing thing. I know the majority of guys in this clubhouse had that feeling of being so close to the ultimate goal of winning the World Series. There's not a day that goes by that they don't have that in their minds of how much fun that was and wanting to do that again. I know I do."

Do you think you can thrive at the plate being a part-time player, or do you need more consistent at-bats?

"I think for every hitter, the more you play, the better off you're going to be. Having said that, if that's not the case, you've got to figure out a way to help your team win. I've had experience on both sides, so, in theory, I should know how to play every day and not play every day and be a productive member of the team."

Of the pitchers you've caught, who has the nastiest stuff?

"Fausto Carmona (Indians). Nine-seven mph sinker that falls like this (sinks straight down). His changeup is like a split-finger (fastball)."

You were a linebacker and running back on your high school football team. Did it just follow that you would be a catcher in baseball?

"Oh, I think it's a natural position that matches my personality. It fits who I am. I have a lot of respect for the game. These guys have been doing this a long time, and baseball has been around forever. The cave man was surely playing baseball. I think it (catching) just fits me."